Last Fourth of July, Meghan McCain brought Michael Ian Black home to Arizona to meet her parents. McCain, 27, a single Republican, and Black, 40, a married Democrat, decided to tour the country together to see how the two political camps can get along. They survived surprisingly well and lived to tell the tale in America, You Sexy Bitch.

When I met Meghan, I was struck by how down to earth she is, despite the fact that if her father had won the election in 2008, I would have been talking to the daughter of the President. Never adverse to speaking her mind, we discussed the media’s criticism of her, her brutal honesty, and her hope to make changes within the Republican Party.

What was going through your mind when Michael asked you to write a book with him?

I thought it sounded fun and interesting to write a book with a liberal. I’ve never done anything like that. It sounded crazy and provocative, and it included politics which is right up my alley.

Michael is so funny. Were you constantly laughing during your trip?

Yes. At first I didn’t understand his style of humor, because it’s a little dry and dark. But once you tune into it, he’s hilarious. I think I made him laugh a lot too. I’m pretty funny.

You said that Michael is the first man you brought home during Fourth of July weekend.

He was the first guy I ever brought home to meet my family, period. A married comedian with kids! Which is very pathetic on my part and shows the kind of dating life I have [laughs].

Have you ever dated a liberal?

Not a hardcore liberal, but I’ve dated independents. I don’t think I could—at that point I think there’s too much that’s different. There’s a difference between writing a book with one dating one.

Your memoir is titled Dirty Sexy Politics; your new book is called America, You Sexy Bitch. Are you trying to promote politics as being sexy?

I think on some level, but it was not purposeful to have the word “sexy” in both. If I ever write another book, I promise that word won’t be in the title! I came up with the title for my first book when I was talking about what I wanted politics to be for young people. “I want it to be dirty, sexy, and provocative,” I spouted off to a friend of mine. She said, “That’s the title of your book!” And this new one, the title came from a story that happened when Michael and I were touring the Capitol.

When you were co-hosting The View, you said that your father did not appreciate the title America, You Sexy Bitch. Is this still the case?

No, he hated it when he first heard about it. I very rarely fight with my father, but he wanted to change it. He has since come around.

You were very honest in your memoir Dirty Sexy Politics, which was nice to read.

That book and the whole experience [of the 2008 campaign] feel like two lifetimes ago. I believe that I’m open and honest almost to a fault. In America in 2012, if there’s one thing I know people respond to—it’s organic personalities. I have this theory, because America is going through such a difficult time with the recession, it’s no longer interesting to watch or listen to anybody who proclaims to be a perfect person with a perfect family. People have responded to me for being honest about things, even when those things are sometimes embarrassing or complicated. Every time I’ve shown my scars and how difficult the world of politics can be, people have really responded.

You have said that your life’s mission is to change things within the Republican Party. How do you plan on doing that?

I’ll keep speaking out, writing, blogging, and working at MSNBC. At some point, I would love to help get a woman elected in some capacity. I would love to work for a female candidate running for President as a Republican. My biggest dream in my lifetime is to see a woman President.

Would you ever consider running for office?

I don’t think that I could get elected since I’ve lived my life so openly. I grew up in the public eye, so there are many things documented about me, and they aren’t always pretty and glamorous. Unfortunately, to run for office in this country, you have to have this perfect narrative, which I sway so far from. In this book, I admit to smoking weed. Is that something voters would vote for? I don’t know. We demand such perfection from our politicians, which is why I think they ultimately become quite boring. Perfection is boring.

Besides your father, who are your favorite politicians?

Chris Christie, Marco Rubio. Michele Bachmann, which I know will surprise people because she’s quite conservative. I met her in person and interviewed her recently and really respect her. Hillary Clinton, because I love a strong woman in politics even though I don’t agree with her. Joe Lieberman, Lindsey Graham; love them. Nikki Haley and what she did for Mitt Romney. Obviously Mitt Romney—I’ll give him a big shout out as well.

It’s known that Laura Ingraham and Rush Limbaugh have criticized you. How do you deal with the media’s criticism?

It’s become such a part of my life starting from when I was very young. My second column I ever wrote was after Laura Ingraham basically called me fat on national television. I opened up about how hard it is to be called fat, ugly, and a slut when you speak out in politics. I have a great support group of friends, family, and a lot of young people on the internet. I get many amazing tweets and comments on my blog and personal website. Anytime I’m feeling sad, I concentrate on the positive. It’s not easy; I don’t think you ever really get used to or get over criticism.

You studied at Columbia University and now live in the West Village. Do people recognize you in the city?

If I come from MSNBC and am all done up with hair and makeup and wearing a dress or suit, people will. I have two wardrobes in my closet. One is politics Meghan, which I wear on TV or to give speeches. The other is punk Meghan, when I wear concert t shirts and dress casual. I barely wear makeup on my off time.

In your memoir, you said that you’ve been at every Republican Convention since your mother was pregnant with you at Reagan’s in 1984. Will you be at this year’s?

I think I will! My mom is hosting a party and I’m going to help her with it. Hopefully I will be covering it either for The Daily Beast or MSNBC.

You have said that people come up to you and say, “Things would be so different if your father was President.”

People say that a lot and I don’t know if people are nostalgic of what could have been because things are still not going well and unemployment is at 8.4 percent. I don’t know how many times they actually mean it, or they are just trying to come up with something to say. I reply, “Thank you, I appreciate your support.” There’s not really much else to say.

Join Meghan and Michael at the Bryant Park Reading Room on Wednesday, July 11^th at 12:30 pm for a talk and singing as part of Word for Word Author series.

In the lobby of WYNC’s offices on Varick Street, Michael Ian Black is chatting with Meghan McCain. It seems as though they are old friends catching up between sips of iced coffee. They’re not. Actually, they only met in person less than a year ago, but in this short time they have toured the nation together and learned valuable lessons from one another, though they are of very different political thinking. Black, a Democrat, and McCain, a Republican, prove that friendship and admiration can cross party lines.

Clutching the book they have penned together, America, You Sexy Bitch, I go over to greet them after their interview with Brian Lehrer. Black and I walk to the nearest Starbucks, where we speak about his book, Washington Square Park, and the first trip he took across the United States—dressed as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.

In the beginning of your book, you said that Ambien and Twitter were instrumental in getting Meghan to sign on to this project. Is that really true?

Yes, I was on Twitter. I had taken Ambien. And the next morning, I woke up and went, “Did I just propose writing a book to Meghan McCain? I think so and I think she said yes. I think that’s what happened last night.” I had only met her once before, via satellite. I had been a fan of hers for years. I liked the way she spoke about the Republican party, and that that she wasn’t afraid to go against party orthodoxy. She seemed like someone who spoke her mind, which I respond to.

Did she meet your expectations?

She exceeded them in a lot of ways. She’s a lot braver than I would have given her credit for. In politics, it’s very hard to forge your own path, because the way the political system works, you’re either in one camp or the other. Meghan is a Republican, but the Republican establishment that exists rejects her because she does not toe the party line. As a result, she doesn’t have a home politically. It’s a shame, because for that party to succeed, it needs to have more Meghan McCains.

You said that her mother, Cindy, was the first person who made you start to think you may have had the wrong impression of some Republicans. How so?

I had an impression of Cindy McCain based on what I knew from the media: She was rich, cold and aloof. None of that was true—except for the part about her being rich. She is really rich. [Laughs] But she was warm and hospitable and open with me in a way that surprised me because they’re a guarded family—as anybody would be in that position. To welcome a stranger into your home whose motivations probably seemed very unclear, I think, was really generous.

In the book, you explain your worry that your two children will not get to experience the American Dream as you did. What do you mean by that?

Every parent worries about the opportunities their children are going to have. My fear for them is that they won’t even see the opportunities that my generation and all previous generations saw. The American Dream is a promise that one generation gives to the other and right now, it’s hard to give my kids that promise. It’s a scary time. That being said, my children are in a much better position than 80-90 percent of other kids in this country because I make a good living. They have a lot of advantages that others don’t, and yet I’m still frightened for my socioeconomically blessed children. I can’t even imagine what it’s like for people living from paycheck to paycheck.

You studied acting at NYU. What is your favorite place in the city?

I will always have a very soft spot in my heart for Washington Square Park. It’s where I came when I was a kid on my first trip to NY. We saw street performers there. NYU is there; I spent innumerable mornings walking across that park and really feeling like a part of the city for the first time.

Do people recognize you here?

I’m not out there going, “Look at me—I was on cable.” People recognize me and are usually really nice and respectful.

The first time you traveled around the country you were 19 and dressed as Raphael, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. What was that for?

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were doing a live tour—like Disney on Ice, but with turtles and no ice. They needed people to travel ahead and promote the show. So that’s what I did; I dropped out of college to go be a turtle. It was an opportunity to see the country and make good money. It was so weird and crazy that I thought, “I should do this.”

Do you keep in touch with your fellow castmates from Wet Hot American Summer?

That movie was populated almost entirely with friends or people who became friends. There are very few people I don’t see from that movie. The only one I don’t really see is Bradley Cooper, but that’s just because he’s in L.A. and is an A-list movie star. I’m actually shooting a movie in July called They Came Together with a lot of the same Wet Hot American Summer people.

How have your political views changed since touring the country with America, You Sexy Bitch?

My own political philosophy hasn’t changed—in a lot of ways, it was reinforced. I think my mind is a little more open than it was before about the conservative philosophy and lifestyle. I’m a liberal—will probably always be a liberal—but I feel like I at least caught a glimpse of what American conservatism is supposed to be about. And that there’s a lot to admire about it.

Are you going to work on this year’s presidential campaign? They’re going to want you to now, since you wrote this political book.

Oh no, I’m not going to do anything for the campaign. I’m not posting yard signs anywhere. I’m not stuffing envelopes.

Those are all the questions I had. But if you want to add anything…

Just that New York City is the greatest city in the world. Is that pandering enough?

Yeah—that’s fine.

OK, good.